Thank you, Kellie Tranter, for the clarification as to the quote from the Auditor-General's Report. The words "as opposed to it being operated by renewable energy" made a most important distinction from "the power need of the desalination plant [being] offset by renewable energy at a wind farm". Its a pity in a way that that distinction was not, in the event, made by the Auditor-General.

I'm not sure that unmasking a bit of political spindoctoring as to the levels of recycled water usage at STPs achieved in replacement of 'drinking water' is a sufficient exploration of the implications of what may be the carefully crafted language of the term 'drinking water' as distinct from 'water consumption'. Any pointers to other possible ominous implications arising out of, or concealed by, this usage?

The byline to the article title on the index page says:

"All political parties should make it known where
they stand on the issue of water privatisation."

Could it be that many present and past prominent figures in all political parties may be compromised because they may stand to benefit from water privatisation and associated investment opportunities, such as the Capital Wind Farm may appear to be? Could that be behind the seeming reluctance of political parties to make known their stance on this issue?

Or is it the almost universal antipathy which politicians secretly have for the Constitution that lies at the root of it? It seems to me that Section 100 of the Constitution takes pains to emphasise not just the rights of States, but also and especially the inalienability of the rights of residents thereof as individuals to reasonable usage of the waters of rivers. It would seem that if the Commonwealth was to legislate with respect to any existent State legislation that appeared as if it in any way might abridge the rights of the residents therein to waters derived from any catchment, such Commonwealth legislation would be held to prevail.

I trust I have made myself sufficiently obscure in my little Constitutional foray. State sell-outs set at nought?

For a discussion of constitutional powers in relation to the environment see the Senate report http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/Committee/ecita_ctte/completed_inquiries/1999-02/enviropowers/report/c02.htm

For an excellent discussion of who owns water and who manages water in Australlia, see
South East Asia Geography Conference Panel: Water Governance in Context
Case Study of Australia Naomi Carrard
Australian Mekong Resource Centre
University of Sydney

http://www.mekong.es.usyd.edu.au/events/past/GeogConference2004/australia_casestudy.pdf

For what does it all mean, see the Commonwealth Water Amendment Act 2008

(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Climate Change and Water,
Senator the Honourable Penny Wong)
 
WATER AMENDMENT BILL 2008

GENERAL OUTLINE
1. The purpose of the Water Amendment Bill 2008 (the Bill) is to amend the Water Act 2007 (the Act), to give effect to the intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform (Reform IGA) signed by the Prime Minister and First Ministers of each of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory (the Basin States under the Act) at the 3 July 2008 meeting of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG).
2. The Reform IGA has also resulted in the negotiation of a revised Murray-Darling Basin Agreement (the revised Agreement) which will come into effect at the same time as this Bill commences.
3. The Bill will enable water resources in the Murray-Darling Basin to be managed in the national interest, optimising environmental, economic and social outcomes.
4. The Bill complements the Commonwealth Government’s $12.9 billion, Water for the Future plan announced by the Minster for Climate Change and Water on 29 April 2008.
5. The $12.9 billion of funding under Water for the Future is not specifically addressed in the Bill. However, this funding supports governance and water resource management reforms and includes:
• establishing the Murray-Darling Basin Authority;
• improving water information;
• sustainable rural water use and infrastructure programs; and
• purchasing water to improve the health of the rivers and wetlands in the Murray-Darling Basin.
....Greg Cameron

(continued)
6. This Bill relies on the Commonwealth’s constitutional powers and a referral of powers to the Commonwealth by New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland (the referring States) to enact certain measures. These measures include:
• transfer of the current powers and functions of the Murray-Darling Basin Commission as set out in the former Murray-Darling Basin Agreement, to the new Murray-Darling Basin Authority;
• strengthening of the role of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) by extending the application of the water market rules and water charge rules to cover, respectively, all bodies that charge regulated water charges and all irrigation infrastructure operators, and by providing for any State or Territory to 'opt in' such that the water market and water charge rules apply to water resources outside the Murray-Darling Basin; and
• enabling the Basin Plan to provide for critical human water needs.

7. The Bill has been informed by, and progresses, the Intergovernmental Agreement on a National Water Initiative between the Commonwealth of Australia and the Governments of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory (National Water Initiative).
8. Schedule 1 of this Bill identifies those amendments that rely in part on the referrals of powers from referring State Parliaments. Schedule 2 of this Bill identifies other amendments to the Act, the Trade Practices Act 1974 and the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 arising from the Reform IGA, or of a minor technical nature. Schedule 3 deals with transitional matters relating to the reforms implemented by this Bill, which do not rely on a referral of powers.
9. The Bill repeals the Murray-Darling Basin Act 1993, and provides for the revised Agreement to be scheduled to the Act.
10. Substantive amendments to the Act are summarised below.